The Dell Mini 10v is one of the most affordable netbooks money can buy, and 8 hours of battery life isn't too shabby either.

Dell may not be as aggressive as netbook-obsessed companies like Asus and HP, but it does have several of them under its belt. Though the Dell Inspiron Mini 9 and the Mini 12 are slowly being phased out, that still leaves Dell's 10-inch netbookof which there are two versions: The Dell Inspiron Mini 10 (review coming shortly) can be configured with bells and whistles such as an "HD" screen resolution, a TV tuner, and mobile broadband. The "v" in the Dell Inspiron Mini 10v ($334) might as well stand for value, since it lacks these options while leaving you with the bare netbook essentials. Still, it's very aggressively priced, and the 56Wh battery secured almost 8 hours of battery life.

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Design
Black is easily the dullest color you can find on a netbook. A shiny layer added to it essentially turns the mini 10v into a smudge-magnet and tempts you to upgrade to one of six other colors for an additional $40. Lighter colors are more effective at warding off these unsightly attributes, as evidenced by the white tops found in the Lenovo IdeaPad S10-2 and Sony VAIO VPC-W11XX. The Editors' Choice Toshiba mini NB205, meanwhile, uses textures and a matted finish to counteract the smearing, while the HP Mini 5101's sleek-looking aluminum metals have a similar effect. At 2.9 pounds (with a 56Wh battery), the mini 10v weighed as much as the Toshiba NB205 and HP 5101; the Asus EeePC 1000HE is the heaviest 10-inch netbook, at 3.2 pounds.

The Mini 10v's takes a similar approach as the Acer Aspire One (D250-1165), in which aggressive pricing is its main objective. So it's difficult, if not almost impossible, to keep up with high-end netbooks like the HP 5101 and the Asus 1101HA. It's limited to a 10-inch widescreen and a 1,024-by-600 resolution, as well as a plain design. Higher resolutions are available with 10-inch netbooks like the Dell Mini 10, HP 5101, and Sony W11XX. If an increase in the screen's physical size is what you're after, the ASUS EeePC 1101HA and Acer Aspire One (A0751h) bumps it up to 11.6-inches, while 12-inch netbooks like the Lenovo IdeaPad S12 and the Samsung NC20 (21GBK) have the biggest netbook screens.

Features
Its 92% keyboard places the Mini 10v at a disadvantage, given that similar sized netbooks like the NB205, Samsung N120 (12GBK), and HP 5101 include full sized ones. Nevertheless, touch typists can adjust to it pretty easily. Netbooks like the Acer One (89%) and Sony W11XX (89%) have even smaller keyboards, which can be problematic for typists over time. The touchpad and mouse buttons are a bigger issue, since they are styled in the same fashion as the Apple MacBook Prosonly a lot smaller. The bottom of the touchpad incorporates right and left mouse buttons, but using them with one hand is like trying to pick up a needle. Netbooks like the Toshiba NB205, the Asus 1000HE, and HP 5101 have better spacing between the touchpad and mouse buttons.

Unlike the Mini 10, the 10v doesn't have options for an internal TV tuner, a higher screen resolution, or mobile broadband. It comes with all the netbook basics that can be found in the Toshiba NB205, Acer One (D250-1165), and Asus 1000HE, including 3 USB ports, VGA Out, Ethernet, and a 4-in-1 memory card reader. The 120GB hard drive is smaller than what you would find in most other netbooks, which average 160GB, but it's hardly a deal breaker. Of course, you can upgrade to a 160GB drive for an extra $25. And like the HP 5101, there is an option to upgrade to 802.11n Wi-Fi, but most people will find that 802.11g is more than enough for most home and business routers. Like most netbooks, the Mini 10v comes with a one year parts and labor warranty.

Performance
The Mini 10v's raw horsepower isn't going to amaze you, as the 1.6GHz Intel Atom N270 processor and 1GB of memory are common parts found across most netbooks. Some are moving to a higher clocked processor like the Atom N280 (1.67GHz), but you'd be hard pressed to notice any performance differences. The 10v's only upside is its 56Wh battery (a $35 option), which amassed 7 hours 58 minutes in MobileMark 2007 tests, placing it in the same league as the Toshiba NB205 (8:40), Samsung N120 (7:57), and HP 5101 (7:20).

If you're seriously considering the Dell Inspiron Mini 10v, it will be for the same reason why netbooks like the Acer Aspire One (D250-1165) and the Asus EeePC 1000HE have been selling so wellit's very aggressively priced. It has terrific battery life and it's cheaper than top rated netbooks like the Toshiba NB205 and HP5101. But what the Mini 10v lacks is a comfortable navigating experience and a desirable design, as well as all the cool features that make its brethren, the Mini 10, so enticing.

Cisco Cheng is the Lead Analyst of the laptop team at PCMag.com. He’s a one-man wrecking crew who tests and writes about anything considered a laptop (yes, even netbooks). He’s been with PC Mag for over 10 years and gets occasional headaches from all the technical knowledge he has absorbed during that time. He’d still be snowboarding and playing basketball had he not been through multiple knee surgeries (well, two). Now he spends his time with Google Reader, the iPhone 3G, and his now 3-year...
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